BART riders can now avoid crowded trains

SAN FRANCISCO -- Bay Area commuters can now potentially avoid crowded BART trains -- or at least find slightly less crowded trains -- with a glance at their smartphones.

The San Francisco Chronicle reports (http://bit.ly/15PS5db ) Bay Area Rapid Transit has added a feature to its online trip planner showing an icon that represents estimated crowding on its trains. One head means riders might be able to find seats, two means they'll probably be standing, and three means riders will be standing very close to one another.

The newspaper says BART officials began exploring a way to share train-crowd data in January after daily ridership topped a record 400,000.

The site shows the expected crowd for the trains as they pull into the first station. Agency officials stress that the numbers are just estimates based on historic patterns, not real-time information.